eyebee

Hi Howard,

As I was the one who spoke to you last night, I'm sure you meant to say soi Pattayaland 2, not 3. Soi Pattayaland 3 is, of course, Boyztown and we don't want any nasty rumours going around about your sexuality!!

I'm also pleased to see you explain what you do in this forum, and I, for one, am all for it and I will try to put right anyone who comes up with negative comments. You're on our side (i.e. the farang's side), not agin it.

It was good having that little chat with you last night - see you again.

Today all the bars outside the Prince Hotel were closed down and boarded up by the management of the Prince Hotel. Bars included are The Chicken Farm, Yates's, and The Buffalo, maybe about 10 in all. The reasons for this are not totally clear, but it is something to do with uncertainty about who owns the Prince.

A couple of days ago the Prince was sold by auction and was bought by the man who owns Mikes Shopping Mall (and who, incidentally is also running for Mayor of Pattaya). It seems however that he only bought part of the Hotel, and last night there was a shooting match (real guns were really fired) between two sets of security guards, guarding different parts of the hotel complex.

Anyway there are a lot of bar girls now wandering up and down soi 8 wondering what to do/looking for new jobs.

The Prince hotel has posted a sign on the boards giving the reasons for closure, but unfortunately it's all in Thai, which I can't read.

I'm sure there will be further developments...

Hi Dave,

Where's your place - perhaps I could pop in for a drink sometime?

Up2U, where did you find out the information on the entertainment zones in Pattaya? And can you post the full details?

As far as I can tell there are no official zones for Pattaya yet. One bar owner has told me that the boys in brown have informed him that he can stay open as he does currently, but there may be zoning next year.

It appears that there is only a provisional zone for Pattaya, the only official zones being the three in Bangkok. This from a recent edition of Pattaya Today:

Provisional entertainment zones have been published by city hall. These reveal that there will be three permitted zones which run from soi 18 in Naklua to the Bali Hai pier in south Pattaya. The boundary is basically Third Road. From there to the beach, fun spots will generally be permitted. However, areas on the other side of Third Road will not be zoned for entertainment and no new registrations will be issued.

This seems contradictory to your statement that there are six zones. Some enlightenment please?

I voted for the "Extreme City" option, but I think there is a third possibility. That is a Pattaya that is for everyone. The bars and general naughtiness will still be there and available, but not so "in yer face". I.e. there for people in the know, but family groups would not be confronted with it when they go out, as they do at the moment on Walking Street.

There are options for families at the moment: Pattaya Park, Nong Nuch etc - but there should be more - a theme park for instance. But the naughty nightlife can be kept - but be more discreet.

Dave, I would highly recommend Lam Morrison - brilliant guitarist and Thailand's answer to Jimi Hendrix. His version of "Somewhere over the Rainbow" a la Hendrix will get your hairs standing on end! He plays most nights at the Blues Factory (esp. at weekends), and also plays at a place in N. Pattaya between sois 1 and 2 I think.

I don't know who's coming to the Pattaya music festival next month, but that might be worth checking out. And if Loso are playing anywhere in town, it's worth seeing them too - take a listen to their Red Album, it's great.

Well a farang voluteer policeman that I know was asked to do this. Luckily he refused so he can still remain a friend!

One of the jobs that some (not all) of these farang police volunteers have been used for is to go undercover into go-go bars and see if any nipples are showing. If there are they take discreet pictures on their mobile phones and then call in the boys in brown to bust the place.

Those who do this I call trators to farangkind!

But if their only job is to help farangs in trouble and act as translators, or even just talk to farangs in their own language, then I'm all for it. Say you get ripped off in a bar, you might find it easier talking to another farang than a Thai copper, who might not understand exactly what you're getting at. So I hope the volunteers are fluent in Thai as well as their own language.

Just my 2 satang worth.

This thread kinda reminds me of the old joke:

A Thai man is visiting the UK, and goes into the bank to change some money. He gets 1 pound for 69 baht. The next week he does the same thing, but this time he has to pay 71 baht for 1 pound.

"Why is it 71 baht for 1 pound, when last week it was only 69 baht," he asks the teller.

"Fluctuation," replies the teller.

"<deleted> you Falangs too!"

must think of a way to make lashings dramatic...perhaps coordinate with beheadings and tie the headless corpse together with the lashee and administer alternating strokes with a drum sounding the cadence...

Isn't that what they were doing at The Cave until it got shut down?